Dickinson wins "most exciting Comet race" ever

Today’s Long Distance Comet Race is the one people will be talking about for years to come.

Stevie Dickinson and Scott Fox put on a sailing duel for the ages which saw Dickinson nip his former crew at the finish line in St George’s off the East End Mini Yacht Club.

That Dickinson somehow won this race after trailing shows the skill the veteran sailor has.

For Fox, it was a disappointing second place finish a day after he celebrated his birthday.

Dicksinson said: “That has been the most exciting Comet race I’ve ever been in. Scotty sailed so well. Every time I thought I had tacked him away, he was right back there. From Ferry Reach all the way to the channel, he made me work. I am exhausted.

“He had good boat speed and was doing the right things like hitting the shifts. It was very unlucky he didn’t win, but it was nice that I won.”

Coming down from Fort St Catherine’s Fox had the lead, which he opened up to two plus boat lengths as he rounded Gates Fort.

Dickinson said: “I figured if I got close to him I could be a little faster than him down wind. If I can get close to him, I can blank him out and get above him and take control of him.”

The champ picked up his 16^th Long Distance Comet Race title, but this one is special.

“This is the reason why I sail. It is so, so beautiful. To work so hard and win this race is beautiful.”

Dickinson said his strategy for today was to keep the boat moving fast and hitting the shifts.

“I did that, but I also hit a couple of holes and that’s when Scotty got back into the picture – maybe I should have covered him a lot better, but don’t worry, that’s gone into the memory bank and that won’t happen again.”

The race saw both Dickinson and Fox near the front from the start at the West End. Fox had a slight lead until Spanish Boat when Dickinson then surged ahead near Hog Fish Beacon. Jamie Harvey got his boat in the mix to make it a three-way race.

Fox said his strategy was “Come down North Shore and play every shift I can. Work the boat as fast as possible.

“When I went past through him (Dickinson) at Oil Docks, then the battle was on.”

He said he was “disappointed” at coming up just short “but in a way I’m glad because my sailing recently has been terrible but today I turned it on.”

Fox took umbrage at Rudy Bailey’s comment this past week in the Royal Gazette that everyone but Bailey and Dickinson were just participants in the Long distance Comet Race.

“He said some of the competitors were just here to make up numbers so he ruffled a lot of feathers. Before that statement was made, I wasn’t even motivated to sail, but after he made that statement, I was motivated.”

Fox was able to pull off his oh-so-close second place finish with new crew Stacey Paynter.

He said; “This is the first time she’s ever sailed with me. I picked her up as crew on Saturday night and she sailed excellently. She told me she only sailed Optis before. This was the first time in a Comet and I knew she was going to be a little rusty, but from 100 yards off the starting line she was on.”